Etihad inks deal with Afghan carrier

Abu Dhabi, May 19, 2012

UAE national carrier Etihad Airways has signed a codeshare agreement with Safi Airways, the leading international airline of Afghanistan in line with its plans to gain better access to capital Kabul.

Under the deal, Etihad Airways has placed its two-letter ‘EY’ code on the four weekly services which Safi Airways has been operating between Abu Dhabi and Kabul since February 2012, said a statement from the UAE carrier.

The new codeshare services between the two capitals started from Friday (May 18). This will give passengers in Afghanistan greater and easier access to the Abu Dhabi-based airline’s network of 86 destinations.

Commenting on the deal, Etihad Airways chief commercial officer, Peter Baumgartner, said the airline continues to expand its codeshare partnership across the world in line with its strategic network development plans.

Etihad Airways, he said, had 34 other codeshare agreements in place. "We were looking to improve point to point service to Kabul through a codeshare alliance with a carrier whose commitment to service and product is building rapidly," he observed.

These agreements will also provide customers of both our airlines with greater access to Etihad’s expanding global network," he stated.

Lloyd Carswell, the chief commercial officer of Safi Airways, said, “The codeshare with Etihad is part of our long term strategic plan to consolidate our presence within the GCC and our ultimate goal to maximise connections to and from Afghanistan."

“The Etihad network will allow us both to create a strategic and tangible step forward in the relentless pursuit of reconnecting Afghanistan to the rest of the world,” he added.-TradeArabia News Service